Press Note/ 
April 22, 2006

 
INDIA-TV DEFIES MEDIA ETHICS:
 FALSE, STALE CHARGES TO BROWBEAT NBA: 
PEOPLE'S RESISTANCE CAN'T BE SUPPRESSED

It was not a surprise to us that when the India TV has shown continuously the so called 'scoop' by its journalist Rajat Sharma, defaming the Narmada Bachao Andolan for allegedly getting foreign money, with the bank account and all, the Channel served the stale story, as a scoop, prepared some five years back by one V.K. Saxena, which we have challenged in the Court also.

It is also not very surprising that Rajat Sharma does not know who's who in the organizations in India. The main protagonist of the 'story' is in no way related to the Narmada Bachao Andolan. Rahul Banerjea was with 'Khedut Mazdoor Chetna Sangath' (KMCS), in the 1980s, whose work had been about the tribal rights and other issues of injustice and some of its villages were in the Sardar Sarovar affected area, in Alirajpur tehsil of Jhabua district of Madhya Pradesh. Banerjea was never an NBA activist. He worked on other issues and NBA had no financial or other connections with him, then or now. Banerjea left KMCS organization in the early 1990s and started his own research programme in Indore. NBA has nothing to do with his activities or source of income.

But no one has cared to ask NBA or Banerjea about that, at least Sharma, being a journalist, could have done that. And yet a news channel runs the unsubstantiated story. Tomorrow, anybody can get hold of the bank account of any former colleague of Sharma and run a 'story' defaming him. The role of Rajat Sharma and India TV channel is devoid of any journalistic ethics and just another gimmick of creating motivated sensationalism. In 1990, the 'Gujarat Samachar' had to retract its statement about the foreign money in NBA and tender an apology in the court. We can see that Sharma and India TV too are expecting some such court case, to increase its TRP rating!!   

NBA has not even accepted the money of the most coveted 'Right Livelihood Award' (Alternative Noble Prize), Goldman Environmental Prize and other international awards. We have created a trust, 'Jansahayog Trust' out of the money of Right Livelihood award and asked U.S. based Indians to keep the other prize money and monitor its use, for those fighting against the flawed development projects, policies, and their impacts.                                                                                                                             

And the 'story' about the people 'attacking' the officials is completely fabricated. What the  people have done is to resist the efforts by the officials and police to force the displacement and fraud on them. The India TV never covered the brutal lathicharge and the adamancy of the administration in Badwani, when the people were on month-long dharna against the illegal cash-compensation instead of land for land, in December 2005. It never had done 'investigative story' on the illegality, fraud and outright brutality of the officials and police in Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra. On the other hand, their reports are based on the fake charges filed against the farmer women and men by the police themselves, taken using force. It did not cover the terror in Gujarat in the name of development, the latest being the attacks on NBA activists and office in Baroda. Sharma could get many 'stories' and 'scoops' if he chooses to be with the people fighting against the system. Alas, it seems that he chose a soft option – be with those in power and play their game against the struggling people.

We understand the India TV channel is also owned by Smt. Maneka Gandhi and the Tehelka group of Tarun Tejpal. If that is true, they also should question the most unjournalistic and sensationalizing behaviour of Sharma, who we know as a senior and responsible journalist. The journalistic fraternity too must object to trivialize their profession by such cheap and fraudulent    gimmicks.

We know fully well that the  bureaucratic, political and financial  vested interests are now out to defame, de-legitimize the Narmada Bachao Andolan, as they are facing the threat  of their getting exposed. These forces may also be wanting to influence the Central authorities as also the apex court. Sensing that being a difficult task, the concerned governments and their cohorts are indulging in the defamation and efforts to shoot the messenger instead.

We are sure that the people and organizations all over India and world, along with the government officials, know fully well the integrity and struggle of Narmada Bachao Andolan. Let Sharmas do many more such gimmickries; it is they and the powerholders behind them who stand exposed.